


THE POWER WITHIN

by ismellitblue



Category: Bleach, Dragon Ball
Genre: Gen, Stuff is about to go down
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-24
Updated: 2017-12-31
Packaged: 2018-07-18 01:22:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 13
Words: 17,065
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7293748
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ismellitblue/pseuds/ismellitblue
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Her father had not designed her to have a zanpakuto.All other souls had that ability,but he decided she didn't deserve one.That was his will and she'd accepted it .She knew the asauchi  she'd been given was just for show, but she took care of it all the same and channeled all her emotions to it.Nemu knew it would never amount to anything,but at least she had something to confide in.(or the one where Mayuri bites off more than he can chew and sets a saiyan loose on soul society)</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This idea has been rattling around in my head for a while now so i just decided to post it.Bleach and dragon ball are most definitely not mine.I'm just borrowing some characters from them.

When the prince of Saiyans had first regained awareness he’d been angry.The woman was nowhere to be found and the brats were also missing.To top it all of he seemed to be stuck on some sort of hybrid planet made from both Earth and planet Vegeta.There was also something wrong with his ki,he could still feel it, but it was tiny.

Almost at the level it had been when he’d first faced Kakarott.Speaking of which,if that buffoon had anything to do with his current predicament he’d kill him in the most painful way possible.At least there were a lot of animals on the strange planet.Some sort of wild cat lunged at him and he dove out of its way.He put out his hands and snapped it’s neck before it could react. Watching the fallen corpse the prince felt a savage joy wash through him.He still had his reflexes.He caught a movement at the corner of his vision.Turning he found whatever it had been was gone.The creature showed up again and he grabbed it roughly only to release it again as he fell to his knees in pain.

His tail!

_What sort of power had done this_?

And how had he not noticed it before he’d grabbed it.How was this possible?With the ki level he had ,he shouldn’t be feeling pain in his tail anymore.

“Come out,and face me,you insolent mongrel!”

Only silence answered him.Enraged by the fact that someone had dared to make a fool out of him he growled in anger.He scoured the abandoned world, looking for whatever had put him there.When that failed he started studying his surroundings and becoming better acquainted with them. He had no idea how long it had been.But he’d learned some things about his new lodgings.The moon and the sun were always up at the same time.They rotated around each other following no particular pattern or length of time.As a result one side of the world was always dark while the other was bathed in red light.There were also underground caves that seemed to go on for eternity.

He’d chosen one of them to live in but he never went to deep into it. Something about the darkness made his skin crawl.He wasn’t scared of going into it.No,the prince of saiyans was not scared of anything.He was just wary of the dark corners.Something about them felt…wrong.His instincts wanted no part of those dark corners and he’d survived for over twenty years under Frieza’s thumb by listening to his instincts. He wasn’t about to start ignoring them now.

With the planet’s conditions throwing his internal body clock off, he decided to make his own calendar.At first he’d tried to do so by timing his meals.That had turned useless when he realized he no longer felt hunger.That had been a very disconcerting discovery.Saiyans were known for two things their love of fighting and food. Realizing that he’d somehow lost one of those qualities had really shocked him.

He had to admit though , not feeling hunger definitely had its benefits.He could train for hours without having to stop because of his rumbling stomach.It also gave him the opportunity to savour his meals and enjoy them even if they consisted of meat,wild fruits and vegetables. Numerous other plans to determine the time failed and the saiyan prince decided to just keep going without time to guide him.He trained until he passed out and stalked some of the more stealthy creatures to sharpen his skills.His power levels were still incredibly low and no matter how hard he tried they weren’t increasing at the rate he was used to.Even his tail was still painful to the touch.

Somedays he’d get fed up with his lack of progress and not get up at all.It was at times like these that thoughts of his family would creep up on him.He always tried his best to ignore them but sometimes the memories were too strong and he’d allow them to sweep him away.His banshee’s high pitched annoying screams would come to mind and he’d remember the particularly loud ones she’d give whenever Trunks and Bra played tricks on her.

The one time they’d put frogs in her lab and she’d screamed for five whole hours had been hilarious.

His internal musings became more common as time passed.Though he had no way of proving it, he knew deep in his gut that he'd been on the planet for several decades.He often found himself wondering if his mate was still alive.Whether or not his grand-brats had been born.Trying to hold on to some semblance of sanity the saiyan prince would throw himself into his training hoping to ease the ache in his heart.

By nature he was a solitary being,but even he had to admit this was too much .

He’d taken to meditating for as long as possible to keep his mind from thinking about his family and about his practically non-existent power level.It was during one of these sessions that something finally happened.There was a crack of lightning and for the first time since he’d been there it started to rain. Vegeta couldn’t sense anything but he knew something new was in his domain.Flying across the planes he heard a new sound,it was a human, a crying one at that. All thoughts of it being the person who’d trapped him there were immediately crushed.Whoever had done this would not be sniveling when they finally showed up.

“Seize that annoying sound at once!”The saiyan roared.

The reaction was instantaneous the figure on the rock stiffened and raised their head to look at him.A girl! Bawling in the rain and feeling sorry for herself.How pathetic,of course the only company he’d get would be too pitiful to even spar with.Perhaps she’d have information on how to get out of the blasted hell hole he was stuck in. The prince was just about to demand answers from her when she spoke up.Her voice was small and timid but it still carried in the wind.

“H…Hello,My name is Nemu,a…are you my zanpakuto?"


	2. Chapter 2

Mayuri-sama was angry again.

Some of the division members had ruined an experiment.

“Nemu!Useless girl,don’t just stand there,do something!”

He grabbed her hand and shoved it through the glass.The limb immediately began to burn and she bit the inside of her cheek to keep from screaming.She forced her face to remain blank as she watched the genetically enhanced fire ants devouring her hand. The bones of her pinkie finger were starting to show and she could feel some of the ants trying to eat more so they could get to the rest of her arm.Her hand jerked involuntarily and it loosened a bit.A firm slap from Mayuri-sama had her readjusting herself and exposing more skin to the swarming ants.

When a replacement container was finally provided ,Nemu collapsed to the floor panting.She clutched her injured arm to chest and did her best to protect it when Mayuri-sama kicked her out of the way.

_“Get out of my sight,_ ”He hissed.

She dragged herself to her feet and nodded before making her way out of the lab.The lower ranked officers looked away as she passed.Though she had a higher rank than them,they did not offer to help her.No matter how hard she tried they never obeyed her unless the order came directly from Mayuri-sama.

The lieutenant of the twelfth squad staggered into her room and hurriedly began attending to her wound.The last time she’d been hurt and had fainted before she could heal herself Mayuri-sama had taken her healing kit.It had taken weeks to get back to normal as he’d also cut her meals so that she only ate a small bowl of soup once a week.

_“I don’t reward laziness,”_

Those words echoed in her mind as she finished with the antiseptic and injected the regeneration serum.She waited until the healing serum took effect before turning on the shower.It took her approximately twenty-five minutes to not only heal her wound but also,shower and make herself look as pristine as always.

A new record.Perhaps Mayuri-sama would be lenient when punishing her for the latest lab accident.She was just about to go back to him when there was a knock on her door.It was Akon.His message was brief and Nemu thanked him before ushering him out.

Mayuri-sama had gone to an emergency meeting,as punishment he’d left her behind.Two officers were stationed outside her room to ensure that she didn’t go anywhere.She sat down on her bed and contemplated her mistake.All the other officers were her responsibility,their mistakes were her mistakes.Even if she wasn’t there,she would always be punished twice as hard as them.That was the way Mayuri-sama had explained things to her and Mayuri-sama was always right.

A heavy feeling settled in her chest as she tried to work out her father’s reasoning.The feeling always showed up when she focused on the way her father treated her.It was very different from the way the other vice-captains were treated.At least from her point of view.But her father was always right,so her thoughts were not only unjustified ,they could also be considered treasonous.

She got off the bed and headed to her window.She felt beneath the windowsill until her fingers made contact with a cloth wrapped object.She carefully pulled it out and went back to the door to check if it was still locked.It wouldn’t stop her father from coming it but it would give her time to hide her treasure.

She went back to her bed and started unwrapping the object.She removed all the wrappings until she finally held a gleaming blade in her hands.She cleaned and polished it carefully,removing all traces of dust from it.Mayuri-sama had given it to her as a test, to see if she could imprint on it.When she’d failed to do so after over a decade of trying, he’d laughed at her.He’d then revealed that it had been a way of reminding her, of her place.She might look like a real soul but she was nothing more than a cheap imitation.

His words had been the truth but they’d hurt.He’d then told her that he expected to destroy an asauchi by the end of the day.Mayuri-sama hadn’t specified whose asauchi he wanted to destroy and she’d taken advantage of that.She’d handed him the asauchi of an eleventh squad member who’d died close to the twelfth headquarters.When he’d vapourized it with a look of absolute glee,she’d been petrified he’d realize what she had done.She’d wanted to bow and start begging for forgiveness but she’d stood by her decision.

That had been the first time she’d li...no,she’d withheld information from him.He hadn’t asked whether or not it was her asauchi and she hadn’t volunteered any information.She’d found the secret hole in the windowsill completely by mistake but it had served her well.It didn’t show up in the blueprints so she guessed it had come after the construction was complete. Mayuri-sama never thought to reach deeper beneath the ledge so her weapon remained undetected.She always checked to see if he had any bugs in her room,whenever she detected them ,she made sure never to touch her blade or hint to anything being amiss with the window.He usually had them removed after a few hours.

The blade was her only friend.Sure she often spent time with the ladies from the shinigami women’s association but she couldn’t tell them anything and most of them, with the exception of the president Yachiru thought she didn’t have any feelings.With the asauchi things were different,she could tell the blade anything and she didn’t have to worry about it getting back to her father.

Her asauchi,never replied and she knew it never would, but talking to it helped.She could unleash all the things she was feeling and talk about things that she’d been too scared to talk about without fearing retribution.She knew she should hand it over to Mayuri-sama but she couldn’t bring herself to.Not only would the beating she’d receive eclipse all the others she couldn’t bring herself to do it.

The asauchi was the one thing that she owned that was just for her.No one else just,Nemu.

She grasped the blade’s hilt and lay down holding it to her side.After pulling the covers over herself and her blade making sure to hide it she allowed herself to slip into a trance like state.Her mind went back to all the events that had gone on through the week and she let all the feelings that she’d suppressed come forth.

She floated in the dark recess she’d become accustomed to,trying in vain to get rid of weight in her chest.The tears that always seemed to lighten her heart were only making it heavier.Even the darkness wasn’t as calming as she was use to it being.Something was stirring in it and it was scaring her.Nemu knew that she should be trying to get out but she didn’t care anymore.All the emotions he’d been suppressing were overwhelming her and she didn’t have the will to fight anymore.Her melancholic mask wouldn’t come back on, so she just buried her face in her hands and started sobbing earnestly.

The voice that cut through her crying startled her.Her hand moved to hide her zanpakuto but she realized it wasn’t beside her.She looked at the man in front of her and stood up,dropping into a fight stance.

That was when she noticed his tail,after that discovery her mind started working rapidly trying to figure out what was going on. She hadn’t heard her lock rattle,so no one could have come in without he knowing.The was a strange tailed man with a flame like hairdo standing before her.She was in a strange place.It didn’t match anything on the various geographic maps she’d memorized.Both from the living world and from soul society.Even some of the things she’d observed in the few moments she’d been there were strange.From the sun and the moon circling each other to the rain that corroded the surroundings only for them to reform in an instant.

All this seemed to point to one thing,she’d heard snippets from officers who’d met their zanpakuto spirits but they’d always kept quiet when they’d noticed her.Even Mayuri-sama hadn’t given her any guidance he’d simply thrown the asauchi at her and told her to figure it out.She’d read up on the matter to the best of her abilities.But the books failed to capture the mechanics of the emotional aspects and that was one area in which she was severely lacking.

She hadn’t even realized she’d voiced her hopes until the gravelly voice from before spoke up again.

“What in the galaxy,is a zanpakuto?And how do I get out of this place”

Nemu looked up to reply and found herself looking into the man’s eyes.Her first instinct was to look down as Mayuri-sama had instilled into her,several beatings at a time.But she could not look away and her body would not go into the defeated pose she’d learnt decreased the number of beatings she was given.

The man’s gaze sharpened and he glared at her, a feral smirk on his lips.Her thoat closed up and she could feel cold sweat running down her back but she kept her pose.Something in her just would not yield to the man and she cast aside all the fear she felt and stood her ground. He stepped forward and she knew she was going to die.Mayuri-sama had subjected her to a lot of training but something in the way the man moved let her know she was outclassed.She couldn’t even sense his spiritual energy,that alone sett off alarm bells in her.

He stalked closer to her until he was a foot in front of her. The man looked at her for a long minute ,before going sitting on the rock behind her.He indicated to the space beside him and she sat down,making sure to leave some distance between them.The charge that had been in the air was still there but it was lighter somehow.He folded his arms across his chest and looked at her as though she were a peasant from the rukongai.

“Listen here Nemoo,you seem to know what this place is ,now talk before I blast you into oblivion.”He said regally,putting just enough emphasis on her name so that she knew he was pronouncing it wrong on purpose.

Despite the threat,Nemu knew he didn’t mean it.Mayuri-sama always said he’d to terrible things to her and he did them.She knew a bluff when she saw one,but she decided to go along with his charade.By now she’d ascertained that he was her zanpakuto spirit. But why would he ask her what a zanpakuto was?Shouldn’t he already know. Maybe it was a test to see if she was worthy,she’d heard of such things.She did not want to be shunned by her zanpakuto spirit because she hadn’t supplied him with enough information.Gathering her wits she she prepared to tell him all she knew,not only about zanpakuto’s ,but about soul society as well.

Perhaps he’d even be willing to tell her his name after she was done.


	3. Chapter 3

Growls and whimpers intermingled as a figure went through a pack of wolves.One tried to lunge at him only to have its snout broken by his fist.Another lapped at his heels and he brought his leg down delivering a kick to its to its hind leg.

This went on for a long time,the wolves healing and reforming each time he destroyed them.Once he felt calmer the wolves stopped coming back up.They just dissolved into the surroundings.

The prince of Saiyans collapsed under the shade of a tree.Since the girl’s visit a lot of his questions had been answered.The answers however had only added to his problems.

He’d learnt that the girl knew absolutely nothing about saiyans,or aliens for that matter.She believed they’d been _created_ together.That he was her zanpakuto spirit,her soul slayer.To top it all off he was stuck on the little planet,her inner world.

The only way he could experience any freedom was if he told her his name.Shikai,she’d called it.

Vegeta had told her his name then and there, but a roar that came from all around them had drowned out the sound.He’d tried repeating it  over and over but the same thing had kept happening.In the end the girl’s time had run out and she’d vanished from the planet.

Though Nemoo’s visit had increased his concerns about his situation, it had made things a bit easier for him.Her explanation on reiatsu had been very helpful.It was similar to ki,but only worked basing on spiritual energy,not focusing on the physical.Since he’d begun actively using it, the increase in his power had been astounding,he still couldn’t access his techniques but the familiar thrum of energy was welcome.Even his flying was no longer the halting slow pace he’d had to contend with before.He coud also manipulate his surroundings.It turned out to be especially useful in training,the wolves he’d trained with earlier had been a way of trying to hone that particular skill.

The weirdest thing however was the inner world’s moon and sun.Sometimes while they were circling each other he could see glimpses of the girl’s world.It wasn’t like seeing through her eyes,he could see things all around any area she was in,even if she wasn’t looking at them.They always shifted very quickly from scene to scene but for the most part he had no trouble following what was going on.He could even hear what was being said.

 So far, he was not liking what he was learning about Nemoo’s world.Everybody treated her like some sort of robot.And she didn’t even stand up for herself.When given an order she’d follow it without question.Most of them made it sound like requests but it was pretty obvious they were looking for somebody to throw their workload on.

Normally Vegeta wouldn’t care if somebody didn’t have the guts to stand up for themselves.But this was different.He lived inside her mind.And the prince of saiyans was not about to be trapped in the body of a weakling.

_“Stand up for yourself”_

Vegeta all but shouted as a pink haired little girl asked Nemoo to tear off her shikahuso so that they could use it for a makeshift rope to swing from tree to tree.Nevermind the fact that the idea was completely dumb and unnecessary ,none of the women in the group were being asked to rip up their clothes.

Why should Nemoo do it?

The saiyan prince could see her hands moving towards the fabric ready to tear off the seams.She clearly did not want to do it, but  she was going to do it anyway.Vegeta knew she  liked looking presentable just as much as he did.The rare smile she always had when she looked at herself in the mirror was proof enough. That was one of the very few things he found they had in common.Now she was about to go around looking like a peasant all for some pipsqueak’s entertainment.

_“Just SAY NO”_ the saiyan prince growled.

She clenched her hands  lightly and he could feel the ground beneath him rumble.

“I am sorry,President Kusajishi I cannot do that”She said calmly.

The chatter that had been going on around them seized.Everybody stared at Nemoo like she’d sprouted a second head.

A smirk graced Vegeta’s lips at their stunned expressions.He took a moment to enjoy the victory before something occurred to him.

She’d heard him!

Ever since he’d discovered he could tap into her day to day life he’d been trying to get her to notice his presence.The breakthrough was unexpected but most definitely welcome.

A squeal broke into his thoughts and he saw the  little girl began throw herself at Nemoo.Hugging her and peppering her face with kisses.Soon all the women were surrounding them,cheering Nemoo.Apparently they were not used to her having an opinion.

_“Tell them to get their filthy paws off you,Urggh tell that brat to stop with the kisses,it’s annoying.”_

Instead of  listening to him Nemoo leaned into the hugs she was being given .Flowers started sprouting all around him and Vegeta instantly began ripping them out.The wretched things were everywhere.

Tch…how ungrateful.

Several days later,Vegeta was wishing they were back at the garden surrounded by annoying banshees.

In the weeks since he’d begun talking to Nemoo,she’d been working alone most of the time.From what Vegeta could tell she was some sort of scientist.She had told him she was the Lieutenant of  squad 12. According to her there were 13 squads and each squad was led by a captain .

He had never seen her captain and after she’d told him that the man was away on important.She’d also told him that the man was her father,hearing about family rubbed him the wrong way so he hadn’t asked any more questions.

Clearly that had been a mistake.

Vegeta watched with a strange sort of detachment as a kick landed on Nemoo’s side and a crack rang out.She spit blood and got on all fours,a direct hit to her back had her crashing down again.A fist connected with her face and she stopped moving.

A wave of lethargy overcame his body but he fought it off.Nemoo was in trouble and while he didn’t feel particularly close to her she was the only company he had.Besides if she died, he died.

With all of his strength Vegeta kept his eyes open even as his body hit the ground and he landed face up.

Some of the division members were dragging Nemoo’s body behind her father. They followed him into some kind of torture chamber and strapped her body onto a metal table.Memories of the time when he’d served Frieza surfaced as the captain began cutting into Nemoo.Her body twitched as he exposed her internal organs and Vegeta fought off another bout of unconsciousness.

Only the years of torture he himself had endured stopped him from gagging as the man began stabbing at her liver.Blood spurted all over the place and this seemed to make the man’s strange smile widen even more.He frowned slightly when he realized that the pain hadn’t woken her up.He began cutting her up with more vigor after that.

He’d just pulled out some sort of  barbed clamp when a body materialized beside Vegeta.

Both of them lay there in silence as they watched her body being mutilated. Vegeta glanced at her from the corner of his eye ,she did not seem shocked at this treatment,she was rather calm about seeing her father figure  rip out her intestines.

“I should go back,Mayuri-sama will carry on with the punishment if I sleep through it,If I am awake my reactions will let him know that I am sorry for failing him ”

Her voice was as calm as always but Vegeta could tell she was scared, he knew she would do it anyway.Just as he’d always made sure to throw as many insults as possible at Frieza and Zarbon.He’d known they wouldn’t kill him, _the monkey prince_ was too good as entertainment to kill, but the angrier they got the faster they’d  knock him out and leave him be.

He slowly lifted a resisting hand and gently squeezed her shoulder.Her eyes met his briefly and a moment of understanding passed between them,with that she was gone.

A cackling laugh met his ears and Vegeta knew without a doubt that the man had realized that she was awake.He closed his eyes and tried to block out the sounds of screams mingling with the laughter.

The torture went on for hours and through it all Vegeta fought to stay awake.His own memories of similar events clawing at him, he ignored them and focused on making sure Nemoo knew he was with her.It wouldn’t do much for her but that was one thing he’d always wished for whenever one of Frieza’s minions took out their frustrations on him.

When the powdered freak finally left,Nemoo had long since stopped screaming,she simply stared blankly at the ceiling as one of the division members,Akon,stitched her up.As per the captain’s orders she wasn’t given any further medical attention other than making sure her entrails wouldn’t fall out.

Long after the horned male had left Vegeta lay on the edge of the cliff,unmoving.

When he got up and headed towards his cave all the animals scurried away and hid.They were used to him being in a perpetual bad mood but this,this was different.His aura had gone from grouchy to downright sinister.

He’d spent most of his life as a punching bag.The prince of saiyans was not about to go through that again,even if it affected him indirectly.

It was time for a change.


	4. Chapter 4

The stench of the sewers threatened to overwhelm her but she ignored it as she settled deeper into the shadows,clutching her zanpakuto close.

 Perhaps if she went back he wouldn’t notice that she’d runaway.

_Don’t be an imbecile,of course he knows you’re gone,you knocked out squad members in your haste to leave,besides the bag you packed  gave you away._

She started slightly at the voice in her head.Three years of talking to him and it still caught her off guard whenever he chimed in.He was right though,by now her father would have gone through the video feeds of her departure and would have confirmed her running away.

_He knows of my existence now.If he gets ahold of us,one way or another we are both done for._

Nemu sighed at that,in her panic she’d inadvertently given up her secret.

She’d known that her father augmented Ashisogi jizo from time to time,he liked reminding everybody of that.What she hadn’t known was the exact methods he used.One was always respectful of their zanpakuto,that was the first rule in all the books she read.

Mayuri-sama did not respect Ashisogi jizo.

_Flashback_

The zanpakuto  screamed,the yellow baby’s eyes leaking poison as it cried.It was secured in  some sort metal contraption and an electric current was running over it. Captain Mayuri watched the whole thing dispassionately unaffected by Ashisogi jizo’s pain.

Thoughts of the same thing happening her zanpakuto made her stop in her tracks and head back towards the door.

“Nemu  get back here!This is  a crucial stage in my experiment I need you to increase the current while I observe effects it’s having on the poison.Nemu!If…”

She didn’t hear the rest of it as the door slid closed behind her.The roaring of blood in her ears wouldn’t stop  and a coldness that eminated from her heart shut all else out as she continued moving.

Running back to her room she took out a bag that she sometimes used on her trips to the outer Rukongai.She looked around her room and walked all the way to her bed,then back to her closet again not knowing what to do.

_Get four pairs of clothes and that space blanket as well as your sleeping bag,don’t fold just throw them in.Throw in your medicine tool kit.Take some soul candy.The emergency food rations you made ,take them as well._

The voice was calm and sure and she followed the directions without question.When she was done she went to her windowsill and pulled out her zanpakuto,using a the cloth that held it as a makeshift scabbard and slinging it over her shoulder.

She opened her door and came face to face with four squad members.

“Vice-captain,your presecnce is req…”

Nemu’s hand shot out before she even realized what she was doing and the man lay a crumpled heap at her feet.Two others followed quickly ,the last one, fifth seat Keiko,put up a fight.Her blows were  swift and her feet extremely fast but Nemu had seniority over her and a minute later she’d joined the others.

After that ,it was a matter of flash-stepping out of   the headquarters.

_End flashback_

The human world was her  best bet ,it would be difficult  to hide her  reiatsu,but if she could manage it,she wouldn’t be found easily.The ryoka had been hiding there for several decades.If they could do it,so could she.

Mind made up she began moving again,making sure to keep all sound to the minimum.She raised one of the manholes slightly and peeked out.Moonlight shone across the deserted alley and she climbed out of the sewers and  hid in a dark corner.

“Do you think she’s around here?”

“I highly doubt it,Captain Mayuri probably murdered her and is lying about her defecting so that he can cover it up.Lieutenant Nemu is way too spineless to run away”

The voices tapered off as the two shinigami continued walking,unaware that they’d just passed by the very person they were discussing.

_That coward has enlisted the help of other squads to find you,we need to get to the senkaimon and fast._

Nemu swiftly made her way to the headquarters of the kido corps.Keeping an eye out for danger and making sure to keep her presence hidden.

When the location of the senkaimon came into view her heart began pounding.Doubt once again assailed her as the countdown for the gate to open began.She’d never lived on her own before,what if she couldn’t do it? Maybe Mayuri-sama wouldn’t touch her zanpakuto, after all she was a lesser being and he wasn’t interested in things that were inferior.He only wanted superior experiments.Maybe if…

_Enough!We are not going back to that creature,if we do,we will never know the mercy of death. Now get ready the gate is about to open._

Her zanpakuto’s words reinforced her will and she prepared herself as she felt the spirit energy in the area begin to shift.

A second later the gate appeared and she flash-stepped towards it .Passing the shinigami who was entering the Sereitei as nothing more than a blur. Exhilaration flooded her veins as she felt herself passing though the world barrier.

                                                                                        

She reappered in a park of somesort and was about to head out to explore the area when a familiar cackle stopped her in her tracks.

“Come now,Nemu you didn’t think it would be that easy did you?”

Mayuri-sama stepped out from behind one of the trees and the scene instantly shifted.The trees shook for a bit before blinking out of existence and all the other tiny details that made the place appear like it was part of the land of the living were all replaced by features she was very familiar with.

The twelfth division training grounds.

Hands grabbed both her arms,and only then did she notice her division members and some high ranking officers surrounding her.

“Take her away,I’m going to deal with her _personally”_

She turned to walk away with the guards and Mayuri-sama kicked the base of her spine.Pain like she’d never felt before  ripped though her.

Her vision went black for a few seconds and when it cleared she realized she was lying on the ground,Mayuri-sama was laughing hysterically in the background and the darkness stole her vision again.


	5. Chapter 5

_Nemoo….Nemoo,listen to me you have to fight the pain.Focus on my voice and nothing else._

The voice was insistent but the fog surrounding her was too strong.She let the welcoming dark surround her and was just about to let herself drift off, when the voice came again.

_FIGHT!_

The word yanked her from the clutches of the alluring nothingness and she became aware that somebody was pulling her by her hair.She opened her eyes and found herself face to face with her father.He was grinning at her in the same way he normally did, before carrying out some incredibly painful experiments on her.Her mind went blank as he raised his hand and she braced herself for the incoming fist.

….. _fight…_

The very word that had awakened her ,echoed once more and she moved without even realizing it.

“Hado #4,Byakurai!”

There was a scream of pain and several shocked gasps from the surrounding shinigami.Nemu took the opportunity to free herself from the loosened grip and retreated a few step back.She dropped into a fighting stance and stared at her father ,looking him directly in the eye for the first time in centuries.

Her hands shook ever so slightly as she observed the damage she’d done to his shoulder, but she stood her ground.Mayuri-sama dropped his hand from the wound and all of a sudden the pressure in the air became stifling as poison laced reiatsu leaked into it.

Nemu let her own reiatsu flare in  defence.She blurred towards him and tried her best to get a hit in, but even in his injured state Mayuri-sama was still a formidable opponent.His hakuda skills were much more formidable than hers and within a few seconds ,a well aimed kick had her tasting the artificial grass of the training ground.

She climbed to her feet just in time to avoid another kick to her spine and promptly rolled out of the way of an incoming attack.

“Hado#31,Shakkaho!”

The movement was a fraction too slow and a second later she could feel the red fire searing her side.She ignored the sting from her right side and the smell of burnt flesh as she tried to kick his legs out from under him.

He took to the air and bars of bright light formed in his hands.

“Bakudo#62,Hyapporankan!”

Nemu was already running by the time the first rod hit the ground.She managed to avoid most of them but one caught her sleeve and she had to tear it off in order to escape.She landed on one of the tree stumps ,sweat pooling between her shouder blades as she tried to calm her erratic breathing.

Mayuri-sama on the other hand seemed mostly unruffled despite the gaping hole on his shoulder.

_You won’t be able to keep this up much longer,try to…._

Her zanpakuto’s plan was short and simple.Nemu didn’t know how well it would work but she widened her stance and took a chance anyway.

“Hado#33,Sokatsui!”

The blue flames rushed towards her father and and he merely waved a hand lazily as a barrier came up to block the flames.

He didn’t even bother to move.

The plan had been counting on him doing just that .

Nemu used shunpo to reach the flames  as they began to diminish and unleashed her second attack.

“Hado#58, Tenran!”

The tornado fed the flames,making them a hundred times stronger and Nemu had a split second to see the barrier crack before her view was obstructed by dust clouds.

The entire area was silent for a few seconds and she took the time to look at the spectators who had steadily increased as the fight had progressed.She was rather shocked to see several squad captains and lieutenants amongst the crowd.

The rubble that her father had been buried beneath began to shake and she refocused on the battle.A quick scan of her surroundings revealed the location of her zanpakuto and she rushed forward to retrieve it.

She’d just gotten her hand around the hilt when debris started raining all over the place ,a blue barrier came to life as one of the captains protected the spectators.Nemu, was forced to use her zanpakuto to cut through the large rocks with her zanpakuto and dodge the smaller ones as best she could.

Her reiatsu was too depleted to even consider holding a barrier for long.

 

She could make out a figure standing  amidst the dust and she wondered why he wasn’t attacking as the rain of rocks slowed down.A few seconds later her question was answered when her father’s voice uttered the words she’d hope not to hear in the battle.

“….Kakimushire,Ashisogi jizo……”

A baby’s cry could be heard and purple fumes started flowing through the air.Killing the few plants that were not artificial upon contact.Nemu flared her reiatsu a bit more to repel them, taking care to preserve as much power as she could.

When her father was finally visible enough ,Nemu had to fight back the urge to run forward and attend to his wounds.

There was blood flowing from a wound on his forehead and she could see bits of bone peeking out from his collarbone.The fire had apparently caught him in the very same area where her lightning had struck him earlier.

 

  The manical grin he‘d worn was gone replaced by a flat look that Nemu had only seen directed at people Mayuri-sama found worth his time.

A slight warmth went through her at finally being seen but a sharp reprimand from her zanpakuto had her refocusing just in time to avoid a downward swipe.

The blade almost knicked her and Nemu kicked out to put some distance between them.She knew without a doubt that Mayuri-sama had altered the poison to work against her the instant she’d run away.

They continued like that for a while ,delivering strike after strike looking for weaknesses.In the end experience and skill won as Nemu felt one of Ashisogi jizo’s prongs pierce her arm.

She staggered back a few paces and her zanpakuto bearing most of her weight as her body tried to fight the paralysis.Mayuri-sama was casually walking towards her ,ignoring his own injuries as he twirled his zanpakuto in one hand.

_Zanpakuto….What should I do?_

_Zanpakuto?_

No answer came and for the first time in years Nemu realized that the gravelly voice she’d become accustomed to had gone silent.

A kick to her stomach sent her flying through several walls just as she made the discovery and a particularly hard crack had her reintroduced to unconsciousness once again.The fear of dying alone following her into oblivion.


	6. Chapter 6

She stood alone and watched as the inner world crumbled in silence.

By the level of destruction going on ,Nemu expected to hear at least some  sounds of anguish, but everything was quiet.

The wolves went down without even a whimper as the shadows devoured them.The trees did not groan in protest as the winds ripped them out by their roots.Even the tempest tearing apart her world was silent.Lightning flashed all around her as she did her best to dodge it.No thunder followed its descent,nor did the wind howl as it tore at her clothes.

She flew across the crumbling world dodging both the debris and the dark shadows   as she searched for her zanpakuto spirit.

When she found him, he was meditating on top of one of the few mountains still standing,paying no mind to the chaos going on around him.Shadows were steadily moving up the mountain but they were a long way from the peak.

She landed and made her way towards him.He cracked an eye open and  got to his feet.The solemn pair stood side by side watching the destruction going on below them.

The unnerving silence continued and Nemu found it didn’t scare her as much, now that her zanpakuto was with her.The shadows were almost at the peak now,Nemu shifted closer to her  zanpakuto,bracing herself for what was to come.He didn’t move away and that on its own was more comfort than Nemu had ever expected in her life.

_Thank you for spending these last few years with me,zanpakuto-san.I’m sorry I never learnt your name._

He didn’t stop staring at the shadows,but he nodded once in her direction and Nemu felt the weight on her chest cease.

When the shadows finally came upon them,Nemu gripped her zanpakuto’s hand and watched as their bodies were slowly covered by the darkness.Her sight faded as her head was finally enveloped and Nemu felt herself begin to vanish.

She’d was just about to give in when her hand was given a firm squeeze.

_Nemoo,let’s go out with a bang._

The voice was equal parts bloodlust and mischief and Nemu felt herself being pulled until she broke the surface of the shadows.Her zanpakuto held her up as they floated above the destroyed inner world.It was now completely dark except for the brief flashes of lightning that showed nothing but darkness below them.

Nemu startled when he started speaking and she could hear the actual words.His voice was reduced to nothing more than a roar but somehow she could hear everything he was saying clearly.

“My name is…”

He let go of her hand and suddenly she was falling.

Before she could hit the ground she found herself back at the training grounds ,her father standing over her.

He seemed shocked that she was still awake and Nemu took the chance to stand up and right herself.His eyes widened even more as he watched her move despite having been poisoned.

She watched as he raised Ashisogi-jizo and the  fumes became denser.

_He’s increased the toxicity._

_Hmm…like that will change anything,Nemoo its time to show him what we’re made of._

 Mayuri-sama charged towards her and she jumped on top of one of the walls to avoid him.

She grasped her zanpakuto in both hands and held it horizontally.Mayuri-sama made to flash-step towards her but stopped as he saw her pose.

Nemu saw his eyes widen in disbelief ,as the words she thought she’d never get to say tumbled out of her.

 

“Senshinohokori o tachiagarimasu,…..VEGETA!”

The blade stayed exactly the same,the green hilt was still there.The length was exactly the same and even worse,she did not feel the _difference_ other shinigami often said they felt when their  shikai was active.

Had she gotten it wrong?

 

She turned to her father expecting to see him smirking as he advanced towards her.She was relieved to see he was still in the same spot and was about to start formulating a new plan when she noticed something else.

 

Not only was her father not coming forward, he seemed frozen in fear.The other shinigami spectators  also seemed unable to move and were looking up as though seeing something above her.

 

She took one more look at her father to check if he was planning to attack before she slowly turned and looked behind her.

 

Her eyes landed on dark fur and she looked up….up….up and up until finally she took a few steps back

so that she could get a good look.

 

It was an ape, a _giant_ ape, with blood red eyes.It  seemed to exist in two planes.One moment it was completely tangible and the other it seemed to be fading in some areas.It looked down at her and gave her a slight nod.The move was very familiar and Nemu immediately figured it out.

 

“Vegeta…”

 

At the sound of his name Vegeta twitched minutely,that was all the warning she got before ,he blurred and appeared before her father.

Mayuri-sama barely escaped being crushed by a huge right hand and retaliated with a barrage of kido spells that left Vegeta’s feet bound by a well aimed Hainawa.Nemu rushed towards him before her father could do anymore damage and cut the binding.

She landed on his shoulder as they began fighting together.Making up for each other’s short comings.Whenever her father managed to evade one of them he instantly had his hands full with one of them.He couldn’t contain them both.Vegeta was too big and swift to pin down and Nemu was too agile to capture,plus she used Vegeta's bulk to hide herself.

They danced in circles around him until finally an opening occurred.Vegeta had managed to grab hold of Mayuri-sama long enough for Nemu to strike.He wriggled out and Nemu was only able to nick his arm.

All three of them paused midair ,panting heavily.Nemu’s wounds were starting to make their presence known as her adrenalin wore off but she fought to stay alert.She could tell that even her shikai wasn’t going to last long by the way Vegeta was more faded than solid but she ignored it and focused on her father.

He raised his hand towards them and a ball of energy formed in his palm and Nemu knew that she and Vegeta were too tired to dodge it.

Vegeta moved so that she was behind him,protected from what was to come and Nemu felt something lodge in her throat.

No one had ever done that for her before.

The ball got bigger and they tensed in preparation for the attack. When it suddenly broke apart ,all three of them stared in bewilderment at Mayuri-sama’s empty palm.

The staring was stopped when Mayuri-sama started screaming in pain and clutching his arm.Nemu watched in shock as bits and pieces of it began disappearing as tough being melted off by an acid.It was strangely similar to the rain in her inner world.One look at Vegeta,confimed her theory.

_Poison._

Her father crashed to the ground and was knocked out on impact.  Nemu landed beside him and fell to her knees.

Vegeta vanished from beside her and her blade heated slightly.She gazed down at it and realized that she had been wrong earlier,her zanpakuto did have a slight alteration. It was just so well blended she hadn’t noticed it.

The letters were directly on the tsuba and were a beautiful turquoise colour.There were two english letters ,a small cee within a larger one.Nemu traced her finger over them,feeling as though she were touching something precious.

Someone gripped her shoulders and she struggled weakly trying to get away.

“It’s alright Nemu,it’s just me”

Nemu looked up and was met with Isane’s worried gaze.She stopped fighting as she was loaded onto a stretcher.She could see Captain Unohana working on her father.Turning her head to the side she took in the faces of the shinigami who had been watching.

Her eyes closed on their own and she found she didn’t care enough to pry them open.She still didn’t know what was going to happen to her but somehow,she felt better.No matter what the outcome she’d at least tried her best.

She tightened her grip around her zanpakuto feeling reassured by its weight.

_Vegeta,thank you._

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Senshinohokori o tachiagarimasu>>>>rise up,warrior pride.  
> Nemu needs more pride and Vegeta's got it in droves,so i decided to include it in the shikai.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey everyone,I'm sorry it's been so long,my pc died and i just got a new one in December.Any way here's my latest offering.I still don't own bleach.

_“Where is he!??”a voice hissed in the darkness._

_“W…w…we..h…he escaped”_

_“What!Find him,Now!”_

_“B..but …sir…we…”_

_“Why are you still here,I said FIND HIM!”_

_“He left the underworld sir”One of his braver goons piped up,trying his best to hide how badly he was shaking.._

_The figure on the throne and stood up at that and levitated towards his followers,one of the decapitated heads that served as an armrest rolled off but he paid it no mind._

_“What did you just say?”His voice was calm and even and it made the men and women in front of him tremble even more._

_“Heescapedtheunderworldsir”_

_The  floating male took one deep breath and in an instant he was alone in the room.His followers were nothing more than ashes at his feet.He made his way out of the room as the bodies began reforming again,their screams of pain not even registering._

_“Escape…the prince of saiyans had actually escaped from the underworld…”the man’s mind worked overtime as he tried to think of how that was possible._

_There was no way they’d used the dragonballs to revive him.He’d made sure that even after a year had passed they wouldn’t be able to get him back.The prince was supposed to be his secret weapon,there was no way he was going to let him go so easily._

_He’d find him and drag him back to the underworld.He’d work on him like a sculptor worked on a masterpiece and when he was done.He’d set the saiyan prince loose on earth and then….then he’d sit back and watch the world burn._

_***_

Kyoraku Shunsui was not a man who was easily surprised by anything.Sure, most of the time he was either drunk or hungover,but he always tried to be in touch with what was going on in the Seireitei.

He’d known about the situation in the twelfth squad for decades.Everybody had known,it wasn’t like Mayuri kept the abuse of his daughter a secret.They’d just become so good at looking the other way that they barely even noticed it anymore.

As a captain, he’d been around longer  than most of the people in the Gotei 13.Unlike the others who only knew Nemuri Nanago,he remembered her siblings.Nemuri project number one all the way to Nemuri project number six .They had not lasted very long but he remembered them.

Shunsui had watched them come and go like sake on a bad day and he hadn’t ever thought anything of it.

Looking at the kneeling form of the Lieutenant of the twelfth division however,he couldn’t help but feel ashamed and guilty.

The  girl was not merely the creation of a mad genius.She was soul,with  her own will,her own fighting spirit and a mind of her own.

How could they all have ignored that for so long?

***

“Kurotsuchi Nemuri ,you have not only broken the laws of the Gotei 13 by trying to abandon your post ,but you also attacked your captain.Do you deny any of this.”Old man Yama’s voice echoed through the courtroom breaking Shunsui from his thoughts.

The vice-captain of the twelfth division nodded slightly,not looking up.She’d barely said anything since the trial had begun.

“That useless piece of filth tried to kill me.How dare she,after all I’ve done for her.Why I should…”Mayuri on the other hand felt the need to add in his two cents every few minutes.

Shunsui pulled his hat down lower to hide the fact that he was  gritting his teeth.He then took a hidden sip of his sake to calm himself.Captain Kurotsuchi was always annoying but he seemed to have found a new power boost for the trial.

He didn’t even seem to realize how he was the only one happy with the proceedings.Juushiro’s expression remained as serene as always but his fingers twitched towards sogyo-no-kotowari ever so often(usually whenever Mayuri opened his big mouth).

Even Yachiru’s normally cheerful smile had been replaced by a frown and an unhappy Yachiru was a very dangerous thing for one simple reason.

An unhappy Yachiru equaled an unhappy Kenpachi .

That was never a good thing.

Captain Mayuri was too busy listing all of Nemu’s _many faults_ to even notice this of course.The worst part was…he was probably going to win.

Whilst they all knew of the mistreatment, there was no actual concrete evidence.Mayuri had written off everything he’d done to her as an experiment and even had the files to back it up.All of it was vile and inhumane, but as  captain twelfth division  it was well within his right to experiment on his squad members.

The man had already asked for permission to _test_ the abilities of her newly revealed zanpakuto.Citing the fact that she was the first artificial soul to ever be able to produce one as a valid reason to study it in _detail_.He’d then gone on to use the fact that the zanpakuto’s poison was still keeping him from regenerating his arm *** to support his claim.

Shunsui let out a huff of breath, as he tried to think of a way to get the poor girl, out of the mess she was in but found absolutely nothing.

When the old man dismissed everybody else and ordered the other captains to stay and act as a jury he wanted the earth to swallow him.He could see it in the faces of the other captains as well,they hated every moment of this.None of them wanted to harm Nemu ,but there was no other way.Mayuri had effectively forced them to do his dirty work for him.

***

“I say let her go,clown face can suck the tip of my blade if he has a problem with that”Kenpachi,blunt as always was the first to speak.

“We cannot captain Zaraki, lieutenant Kurotsuchi has broken the law and as such must be _punished_ ,”Captain Soifon,did not seem to like the fact that she was essentially defending Mayuri,but she held firm to her belief.

“Maa…aren’t you being too harsh,Soifon”Gin said,eyes firmly shut as he tilted his head to the ceiling.

“It’s Captain Soifon to you…”

Shunsui tuned them out as he tried to think of a solution,quietly sharing ideas with Juushiro.The chatter around the room continued  as eleven captains tried to think of a way to get Nemu off the hook without looking like they favoured her.

A soft cough cut everybody off as they all turned to a figure at the corner of the room.

“ _We_ should punish her…”Captain Aizen said quietly.

“Tch…that’s what were supposed to be doing right now,ho-”

“No,I mean we should punish her in a way that saves her,instead of handing her over to Mayuri-taicho.We could decree her actions unworthy of squad twelve and have her placed in one of our squads,”

There was pin drop silence as the other captains considered his words.

“Where would she go though…”

“I volunteer to take her  into  my squad,Momo is very kind and gentle,she would be good for Nemu,”Captain Aizen said smoothly, cutting off the arguments before they could begin.

For a moment Shunsui thought he detected something untoward in Aizen’s tone but he quickly dismissed the thought.If there was ever a person without a single bad bone in their body it was Aizen Sosuke.

Unbeknownst to him the two other oldest captains in the room had also felt it and they too had cast the thought aside.

With a decision reached they made their way back to the courtroom,the other Shinigami began pouring into the room soon after that.Once everybody was seated Nemu was led into the room,her hands still bound to her sides by bakudo#4,Hainawa.

She was led to the center of the room where she knelt before the captain commander once more.

The old man gave the word and Shunsui watched as Unohana made her way to stand beside Nemu.They’d all decided it was best that she deliver the news .Not even Mayuri was crazy enough to talk back to her.

“After much deliberation,we as the captains of Gotei 13 have made our decision.Nemu Kurotsuchi,you have been found guilty….”Unohana paused to rearrange her haori.

Mayuri’s smile broadened and he started giggling maliciously.Nemu on the other hand looked  as cold as always but the eighth squad captain could tell she was having a hard time keeping up the façade.

“As such you are removed from squad twelve immediately and will be moved to another squad.Whether or not you keep your rank is solely up to the captain you’ll be under.Captain Aizen has offered to enforce your punishment,”

During the course of her speech Mayuri had stopped giggling and now looked like he’d swallowed a lemon.His mouth moved as though to protest,then he took a look at Captain Unohana and flinched.

Shunsui watched as the former vice-captain of squad 12 looked up at Captain Unohana.She seemed to  struggle for a bit before she opened her mouth and addressed her.

“…I would like to serve my punishment in your squad Captain Unohana,”She sounded as though she were commenting on the weather,but her words left the room in a state of shock.

Not because of the fact that she was trying to change the terms of her punishment ,but because she’d spoken up for herself…against _Unohana_ .The captain of the eighth squad was pleasantly surprised and he could tell most of the occupants of the room were as well.

He looked at his lieutenant’s unpertubed face and suddenly remembered that she’d mentioned something about Nemu growing guts.The captain in the pink Kimono now saw what she’d been talking about.

Somewhere beneath all that melachonly,Nemu had balls… and they were made of titanium and steel.

The girl didn’t even flinch as Unohana turned her infamous smile on her.She just looked at her steadily,seemingly unaware of the fact that she was accomplishing something most of the occupants in the room(himself included) could not even dream of.

Wow.

“Very well then,Welcome to squad 4,Kurotsuchi Nemu,You will serve as co-lieutenant with my Isane…I _hope_ you do a good job,”

Nemu didn’t even react to the subtle ,yet not so subtle threat.She just nodded and bowed as her restraints were finally lifted.

“Yes,Unohana-taicho,I will do my best,”

With those words the courtrooms many ,many occupants suddenly remembered that they too had voices and the noise level went through the roof.

As everybody exited the room they were all too busy discussing the case some were overjoyed with the outcome while others(Mayuri) were against the injustice of it all .

None of them saw the slight downturn in Captain Aizen’s mouth.The only person who did was his lieutenant who took it as him being upset he couldn’t help Nemu directly.

She resolved to bake a cake for him in order to cheer him up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Can anybody guess who the evil man at the beginning is?


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I still don't own DBZ and Bleach.

Vegeta had seen the end of many lives( heck, he’d been responsible for most of the deaths), but being in the fourth division,made him truly _see_ ,death.

They’d been in the fourth squad for years and Nemoo had saved countless lives,but many more slipped through the cracks and died while she was trying to hold them together.Members of the eleventh squad in particular,often died of the most horrible wounds.

The buffoons reminded Vegeta of how saiyans used to be,brash,confident and cocky in the face of imminent danger.Fighting with everything they had until,they were either dead,or  too injured to even think of moving.

A pang always went through his chest when Nemoo couldn’t save one of them,(and that happened a lot).The ones that lived however,always made Vegeta’s day. Tormenting them was especially fun.

In the beginning of their service in the fourth squad,a hooligan had thrown towels at Nemoo,demanding she give him a _‘rub down’._ The memory of what followed after,still made Vegeta want too roll around laughing.

_“Nemoo,the man asked for a rub down,obey him”_

_The gravel outside the fourth squad headquarters was especially rough.Vegeta instructed Nemoo,on how to accidentally drop the patient on it.He’d then proceeded to have her accidentally rub every single piece of the culprit’s exposed skin ,on the ground  until it peeled off.When she’d taken him back inside to heal him.They’d miraculously run out of anesthetic, so she’d had paralyze him and treat him,while he could feel the pain but couldn’t move._

_“ My apologies,sir,this will all be over quickly”She’d kept repeating in a deliberately monotone voice as Vegeta laughed uproariously in her head._

Captain Unohana had let her off,with a warning to be more careful.Afterall it had been an accident,even the patient had said so _._

 

 

Since then,Nemoo had become the official eleventh squad medic.Apparently being treated by her was a rite of passage to them( even the substitute Shinigami with the atrocious hair colour,feared her).On occasion she even stood up to the eleventh captain,(especially during immunization time).Others seemed to think this made Nemoo some sort of legend,as though Captain Zaraki was the ultimate big bad.

…Tch.

The prince of saiyans was the most dangerous thing to have ever existed.He feared no one,therefore it was a given that Nemoo should also be fearless.

She was more at ease since they’d been at the fourth squad and he though he never said anything,Vegeata was proud,of the progress she’d made.The tiny smile she wore when they got off work,made Vegeta hold his tongue instead of complaining about how he was not a nursemaid(…just because he was no longer in active battle,it did not mean he’d gone soft).Being a healer was not what he wanted,but it kept Nemoo,away from her whack job of a father.

During the first few years,Mayuri had  tried to get Nemoo back through different methods(ranging from kidnapping to bribery,and a very unfortunate incident,when he’d tried to impersonate Captain Unohana).But he’d quieted down as the decade progressed.Vegeta would sometimes see him in the periphery of his vision,but the man never came closer(he also didn’t try anything underhanded), so Vegeta didn’t tell Nemoo.

The man had gone from looking angry that Nemoo had left ,to a look Vegeta couldn’t identify, but knew very well.It was the same look that King Vegeta had given him,before he sent him to Frieza’s ship.

If Vegeta had, had more time he would have tried to figure out the puzzl,e but as things stood he couldn’t.

There was something lurking in the fringes of Nemoo’s inner world.

It would  disappear for a time,but then it would come back and each time it was stronger than before.When it was finally strong enough for Vegeta to identify it,he almost choked on his own spit.

… _Babidi._

_Of course_ ,the stunted prune.

“ _Vegeta,is something wrong_?”

_“Nemoo,take a break,…we need to talk”_

In all the years he’d been her soul slayer,Vegeta had never told Nemoo about his past.The thought of sharing his precious memories,had not sat right with him.But he knew he owed it to her,to tell her about his past.

He told her of Vegetasei,he talked about his years as a slave,and about his Bulma and his brats.He told her of the battles he’d been in and finally,of the threat Babidi posed.

_“Nemoo,I don’t remember how I died,but I’m pretty certain Babidi had something to do with it”_

_“We have to be prepared for whatever,comes our way”_

She was quiet for the longest time and Vegeta wondered if she thought he’d made everything up.When she finally spoke,her voice was small and it trembled slightly.

_“I-I-If you get the chance,will ...you…leave?”_

The will you leave me wasn’t said aloud,but Vegeta had it all the same.It was sad,like a child,begging for affection from a distant parent.

It would be a lie to say he didn’t want his old life back.But, he also didn’t want to leave Nemoo behind.In the end he couldn’t give her an answer, and she left the inner world without knowing what his decision would be(to be fair he didn’t know either).

When the walls of the inner world were finally breached,Vegeta expected to see the shriveled bean,standing before him,in that ridiculous curtain,he called an outfit.

Instead,he got …a man.

He had shaggy brown hair, a hideous purple coat and the saddest expression Vegeta had ever seen(and considering Vegata had seen the expression on Roshi’s face the day his siter destroyed his dirty magazines,that was saying something).Vegeta had no idea what to do,so he went  with his tried and tested method, that always got him results.

“You smell like wet dog,you’re stinking up my world ,Get out!”He cast the first insult that came to mind.

To anyone else the man,would have appeared,unaffected,but Vegeta,saw the way his eyes narrowed slightly in annoyance,though he recovered his blank look very quickly.He made no move to leave,but instead took a few steps forward.

“…So,you are the articficial soul’s zanpakuto.My name is Muramasa,I have a proposition for you”

The man’s energy spiked and Vegeta felt the telltale prods of someone trying to mess with his head.

He fired a blast,at the intruder,and used the brief reprieve it bought him,to levitate above the man.

“Get…out…of… my …world”He forced energy into his hand,intending to vaporize,the mongrel.

“Gladly,but only if you’ll accompany me”In the blink of an eye,the man vanished from sight and Vegeta felt,a pressure at the back of his neck.

When a portal was ripped open in his inner world once more,he didn’t feel it.He also didn’t feel it when he was,tossed into the Soul Society.


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here it is folks.I still don't own DBZ and Bleach.Enjoy,all mistakes made in this fic are property of moi.

Vegeta did not take orders well.He absolutely hated being told what to do(the only orders he ever received and followed without question had come from his daughter and the woman).

That said, when he’d awoken and found himself in a cave with dozens of other spirits he’d been furious.The smelly mongrel’d had the nerve to  forcefully remove him from his planet.When he finally saw the blasted Muramasa,Vegeta had wanted to tear him to shreds,but one thing had stopped him.

His common sense.

It didn’t make itself known most times, but when it did he listened to it(the one time it had told him not to partake in a prank that involved changing Zarbon’s hair colour had saved his life…literally).So when his common sense told him to stay his rage and actually observe what was going on he listened.

Almost all the zanpakuto spirits were gazing at Muramasa with reverence, as he sprouted nonsense about offering them their freedom.The only one who wasn’t reacting was a man with an X shaped mark across his face and long teal green hair that reach his lower back.He just seemed very confused.

Just by looking,Vegeta knew he could take most of the zanpakuto down,but there were a few among them who’d give him trouble.The more powerful ones, also seemed to be buying the useless drivel Muramasa was selling.

First and foremost Vegeta was a saiyan,but he was also a master strategist.His bloodlust wanted to challenge all of them to a fight ,but his more tactful part warned him off the idea.There were five  zanpakuto standing closest to Muramasa and Vegeta could tell their wielders were captains.

The skull lady sat with a bored look on her face and Vegeta would have been fooled into thinking she wasn’t paying attention,if it wasn’t for the way her lone eye  nonchalantly raked over the crowd every few seconds.Sizing all of them up,the dead eyed stare of the creepy girl beside her also didn’t help matters.

Then there were the annoying brats playing loudly with each other.They seemed perfectly harmless, with their big green eyes and matching outfits,but Vegeta knew better.They weren’t doing anything but he could feel their energy all the way at the back.It felt like a raging sea storm held back by the thinnest glass.The brats were powerful.

The fifth zanpakuto stayed in the shadows.It floated quietly,it’s cloak moving to a phantom breeze.It’s disturbing stillness reminded Vegeta of Unohana for some reason,and he made a mental note to stay as far away from it as possible.(Not even saiyans were that suicidal)

Like most of the zanpakuto they were firmly in Muramasa’s corner so Vegeta opted to let the mutt go…temporarily.The time would come when he could face the him head on,but it had to be just the two of them,the prince of saiyans didn’t like sharing his hunts with anyone.

“I’ve already killed my master,and I’m giving all of you the chance to do the same”

“Claim your freedom”

When the nut job’s words registered Vegeta perked up.

He had no issues with Nemoo and killing her was not at all interesting to him.

But there was one person,whom he’d been dreaming of killing almost as much as he wanted to kill Frieza.

….Mayuri Kurotsuchi.

He waited until the Seireitei was in absolute chaos to begin looking for the mad scientist.When he finally found him,Vegeta was not at all surprised to find the man collecting limbs from a recently dead shinigami and his zanpakuto spirit.

The prince of saiyans fired a blast at the man’s head,growling softly when the clown, dodged it at the last minute.

“What is the meaning of this!You daft creature,cant you see I’m busy!Go find your master and stop bothering me.Shoo!Shoo!Leave!”Mayuri said with a careless flick of his hand,he din’t even give Vegeta a second glance.

…The man didn’t recognize him.

Of all the things Vegeta had expected when he’d found Mayuri,not being recognized was not one of them.

All the years Nemoo had spent,killing herself ,day in and day out, to please him and he didn’t recognize her soul.

A coldness that Vegeta hadn’t felt since his days in Frieza’s army settled over him and he charged forward.Cartilage gave way under his fist as he broke Mayuri’s nose.The man’s garbled screams only fuelled Vegeta further and  he landed several blows to the captain’s torso.

Rage blinded him and his throat was clogged by an unknown emotion as pulled back his fist , ready to pummel the man into the ground.

“Seki!”

The kido rebounded Vegeta and sent him flying backwards.

“Enough of this,clearly,you’ve come here to donate your body to science”

“I gladly accept your selfless offering ”How the man was still managing his shrill tone,with a broken nose was beyond Vegeta,b ut he put the thought aside as Mayuri forced him to start dodging instead of attacking.

“Hado#32,Okasen!”

A yellow arc of fire bolted towards him and Vegeta leaned back to avoid it.The tip of his hair touched the ground,and he felt the heat of the attack as it flew over him.

“Byakurai!”

He didn’t unbend fast enough to get away from the lightning and it hit his shoulder blade.His left arm instantly went limp as the pain raked through him.Vegeta screamed as his shoulder throbbed and  he struggled to stay upright.

“You pain tolerance is remarkable.I can’t wait to have you under a microscope.”

“Perhaps,I might even be able to get ahold of your wielder,whoever they are”

The thought of what would happen once the man found out he was Nemoo’s zanpakuto,gave him enough of a power boost to rush the blabbering scientist once more and try to get in an attack.

“Hadou #90,Kurohitsugi!”

Darkness surrounded him and set his body alight as dozens of spears,pierced his body.When the darkness faded,Vegeta’s body hit the ground with a painful thud and was immediately airborne askick from Mayuri sent him crashing into a wall.

“The fact that your still awake is amazing.Now I really need to meet your shinigami,someone with such a durable spirit,would be an excellent test subject.”Mayuri’s pale face appeared in Vegeta’s blurry line of the sight and the man’s grin widened.

“Tell me who it is and I’ll make sure both of you,get the best treatments the twelfth squad has to offer.Neither of you will ever have to walk amongst commoners again.I can say your shinigami died during the battles,and the two of you ,can spend the rest of your lives,enjoying all that the my squad has to offer”

The man laughed loudly at his last statement and nodded at Vegeta as though expecting him to agree.

Dread settled in the pit of Vegeta’s stomach.The crazy man was going to get his claws back into Nemoo and he’d practically served her to him on a silver platter.

Panic seized him for one blinding moment,until it was gone just as suddenly as it had come.Something shifted within him and Vegeta felt the air crackle with an energy he hadn’t felt in decades.The twelfth squad took a fearful step back as Vegeta rose to his feet,all of his wounds closing up and leaving behind smooth unblemished skin.

A golden light cut through the dark skies as pieces of rubblearound the saiyan prince began levitating.

He curled his fists loosely,enjoying the way lightning bounced off the golden aura that surrounded him.A smirk spread across the saiyan prince’s face as he turned to stare at the open mouthed captain.

“W-wha….hhh-how?”

Vegeta tokk a slow deliberate step towards the quivering captain,huffing out a laugh as the man tried to shuffle backwards.

“You never asked,but I’m going to introduce myself anyway”

“I…am the prince of all saiyans.The most powerful being you’ll ever lay eyes upon.”

“My name is…Vegeta”

Mayuri’s eyes widened in recognition as Vegeta finally closed the distance between them.

Throughout the Seireitei all battles paused briefly as screams a soul should never be able to make,cut through all the noise of the fighting before abruptly going quiet.


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow,I'm on a roll,I just posted a chapter in my YJ fic 'BREATHE" and now here i am,posting again for the second time today.Enjoy ladies and gents,just remember that i own neither DBZ nor Bleach.

A puddle of water moved through the ruined streets of the Sereitei.Every now and then it would freeze up and ripples would appear on its surface as it flowed around battles between Shinigami and their zanpakuto,but upon realising that no one was paying attention to it,it would continue on its journey.

It continued on this way until it reached a secret room in the headquarters of the twelfth division.

Only then did the puddle reveal its true form,as it morphed into the  body of a man,a seriously injured man,who happened to be the captain of the twelfth squad.

He booted the secret regeneration chamber,he’d made specifically for emergencies(though he’d never imagined the emergency would be caused by his daughter’s zanpakuto).

“S-such power,pure primal strength…’

He didn’t even notice that he was talking to himself,nor did he realise that flecks of teeth and blood fell from his mouth with every word he uttered.

The man dragged himself into the healing chamber with his one remaining hand(Nemu’szanpakuto had taken great pleasure in ridding him of the other two limbs he stil had left-hopefully he’d even get back the arm he’d lost).

Vegeta…Vegeta… _Vegeta_ …the name rolled around in his head,for a brief instant thoughts of capturing the creature,and studying it and Nemu floated into his mind,but memories of golden hair  and a feral smirk,that promised nothing but pain and suffering,cut through his musings.

By the time the knockout gas took effect he’d decided never to go after Nemu,or disrespect her in any way.Nevermind,ever experimenting on her zanpakuto(as much as he loved science and all the advances he could make if he had the chance to study the zanpakuto –he loved living even more-and since he was pretty certain Nemu’szanpakuto would kill him if it ever saw him again-staying away was his only option).

At the edges of the Sereitei a confrontation ,much more different than the one Mayuri had just had ,was taking place.

 _“I,had,him,_ Why did you interfere”

“I was about to blast,that fool into the cosmos,I-”

A calm but firm voice interrupted the tirade.

“You’re not a murderer”

“Clearly you and I view killing a sentient being very differently,I’ve ended countless lives and I’ve enjoyed it.That walking baby powder,would have been just another name in my list if you hadn’t interfered”

“Just so we’re clear Nemoo,I kill,and I enjoy it- _I’m a murderer_ ”The man growled,his teal eyes glingting dangerously as he glared at the shinigami.

“You’re not a murderer,you’re warrior-you enjoy the fight more than the kill”

The statement was so  simple and  yet so devastatingly accurate it took the rage right out of Vegeta.

Saiyans lived for the fight,killing was just a side effect,all they really wanted was to test their strength-that was true for all saiyans-himself included.

He looked at the girl before him,his hair flickering erratically from black to gold,it returned to its normal colour.Nemoo said nothing more and waited patiently beside him as he got himself under control.

“Nemoo,take me to a dining establishment,there must be something worthwhile about this backwater pit”

A while later they sat in the twelfth squad’s observation room(Nemoo having hacked into  the system) watching various shinigami battle  their zanpakuto spirits.

“There is no way that mutt-is going to survive this battle-”Vegeta huffed as gnawed on a chicken bone,cleaning it completely,before moving  on to the next piece.

“-And that ant-”

“She’s a wasp,Vegeta”

“Nemoo,take the grit out of your eyes-that”He pointed at the screen with the now completely meatless bone.

“Is an ant”

“How can such a short thing ever hope to achieve anything in life,she should let the giants handle business”

Nemu gave him a careful side eye and very wisely chose not to comment(she knew from the one time she’d mentioned their significant height difference that it was a very sore spot for her zanpakuto).

 

Instead she chose to address somethong that had been bugging her since the day she’d chosen to go to the fourth squad.

“Thank you,for saving me from Aizen”

“Nemoo,all the fighting has gone to your head,what in the blazes are you on about,we’ve never fought that leech”

“No…before,when he offered to take me into his squad during the trial”

“You were uneasy about him,and because of your wariness,I truly looked and saw the cracks in his mirror”

“Thank you for saving me from him,I don’t think I would have survived being someone’s test subject again”

Never one to shy away from praise,her zanpakuto puffed up his chest and folded his arms.

“This cements exactly why I’m the most superior warrior in existence,be thankful the prince of saiyans has decided you are slightly more worthy that the other idiots milling about”

It was the closest Vegeta would ever come to saying you’re welcome and Nemu smiled slightly as she handed him drum stick and they turned their attention back to the screen.

  
They passed the evening like that,enjoying the show,while at the same time learning of the abilities of  the other zanpakuto.

Afterall,it never hurt to know what sort of powers others were hiding.

When the battles finally died down,Nemu deleted all the files(Mayuri did not need that kind of leverage on people),and they left quietly,never knowing that they’d spent the night with an unconscious Captain right under their noses.


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own bleach and DBZ.But on a happier note, I'm finally done with this fic, by the end of next week I'll have finished posting.Thank everyone who's stuck with the story, despite the long update times.Thank you so much, you're awesome.

Of all the things Babidi had expected when he’d hatched his plan, failure had not been among them.

He’d knocked Vegeta’s soul right out of his body.When the spell had taken root he’d been ecstatic,then he’d gone to the chamber he’d constructed for the insolent prince, waiting gleefully for the disoriented spirit to arrive.

Except he never did.

He’d cursed at his minions,re-killing a few out of spite everytime they came back, empty-handed.How could the prince have escaped.

_He hadn’t even known that he was under attack._

And the wizards was certain his spell had been flawless.He’d specifically asked for Vegeta to be taken to the afterlife and bound,still aware of himself to weapon so that he could become one with it and serve his master.

And yet his cage was empty and he didn’t even have a slave to show for his hard work.

He’d tried looking for him in the planes of other dimensions,but the closest he’d come could not have been him.The soul he’d sensed had been too calm and at peace to be Vegeta.Besides,there was no way Vegeta would have gone to the heavens,not to mention a place like the court of pure souls.The barriers repelling those with hate filled hearts were just too strong around that dimension(the likes of Vegeta were not on the invite list) and the wizard hadn’t let his psychic presence linger long there.

He’d given up his search soon after.

The closest thing he got to closure, on the matter was that he got to cause Vegeta’s family,endless pain(not that it did him any good).Every year since their deaths,Vegeta’s demented children would hunt him down.Beating him up for hours while their mother cheered from the sidelines.

They’d vowed to keep doing it for as long as Vegeta was missing and since Babidi had no idea where the saiyan was….he knew he was in for an eternity of torture.

….If only that rotten Prince hadn’t messed up his plans.


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I don't own Bleach and DBZ.

There was war.Glorius war.

The other skirmishes had been nothing but warm ups.Fighting Aizen and the souped up hollows had been fun,but when it came down to it, the war beast in Vegeta was having one heck of a time fighting the quincies.

For the first time since he’d returned to his blade after the Muramasa,Vegeta was free.

They were in a constant state awareness, Nemoo kept him released at all times and they prowled the streets.Going from battle to battle,killing freely and sometimes (very rarely of course) he let his bankai out,bathing the arena in glorious golden light , right before he snapped the life out of someone.

At one point he even got to cross swords with Zaraki when the man was in full berserker mode.Had Unohana not interrupted Vegeta was certain they would have killed the man.

It served the woman right that she ended up dying fighting the Kenpachi(if Vegeta had  held his fist over his heart- _a sign of respect reserved for saiyan elites fallen in battle_ -no one needed to know) the woman had reminded him a lot of his nanny as a boy(bloodthirsty viciousness hidden behind a calm visage )-though he’d never admit it out loud.

He’d put aside her death though,focusing on crushing as many enemies as possible beneath his giant paws and protecting Nemoo.She was enjoying the war as well,eventhough it was for completely different reasons( she and the good for nothing Mayuri had been trying to ‘reconcile’) and she had been bringing the mad scientist the bodies of  their victims-whatever was left of them-during their down time and she and the man would do experiments.

After the experiments Nemoo would spend training with him in the inner world,preparing for the next battle.As the war progressed the fights became far in between ,but the ones they were able to find were worth it.

Nemoo’s blade  glowed gold as his oozaru form disappeared from sight,pouring all his might in to the bankai.Lightning rained down from the heavens poisoning the  very air.

“Vegeta!..Gallick Gun”

Tiny glowing blue orbs,surrounded their latest victim, and Vegeta laughed uproariously as an unfortunate quincy tried to meet the attack with arrows.The fool didn’t even have time to wipe the stupefied off his face before he disintegrated.

They killed a few more after that, some poisoned to death,some were force fed gallick guns,others had their heads chopped off and for some Nemoo drilled holes right through them with her bare hands,dragging his blade form across the ground and using it to anchor herself.When the blood splattered around them,some of it even made it to the inner world.

Painting everything red.

Vegeta took in a deep breath,enjoying the scent of iron and running his bare feet through the  blood soaked grass and it was…peaceful.

Of course it wouldn’t-couldn’t last.

They were half way through taunting a quincy with an awful Mohawk(if one could call those two strands of hair that) when Mayuri’s spiritual pressure began to wane.

Nemoo quickly snapped the man’s neck(accidentally detaching it from the body) before heading right towards the captain.

It was a hand.

Of all the things, Mayuri was getting his teeth rearranged by a hand.A left hand,a limb,not even a full body.

Vegeta let out a raucous laugh at the sight,not even minding that Nemoo was using him to save the waste of space.

They blasted right through the abomination, infusing their special brand of poison,a little bit of super saiyan mojo into the energy ball and topping it off with Nemoo’s super powered throw before lobbing it at the beast and watching in satisfaction as it blew up.

It was only a few seconds of inattentiveness, but that was all it took.

Vegeta was busy enjoying the thrill of yet another successful kill.

He wasn’t paying attention...

There was a sound.A quiet pained whimper,laced with shock and Nemoo’s grip on him slackened and he fell.

When the blade hit the ground, he landed face up, unable to move,not even his eyes would close and for the first time since his first death,Vegeta prince of all saiyans…cried.

Nemoo for her part,was in too much pain to register anything and for that he was glad.The left hand(Pernida) was impalling her with its veins and Vegeta watched in horror as her skin cracked,her bones giving groans of protest as the thing tore her apart from the inside out.

_‘No’_ The word was wrenched from his mind,and he had no idea that she’d heard him,until a few seconds later when the weak reply.

_‘Vegeta…it’s alright’_

He wanted to tell her that it wasn’t so bad,wanted to lie to her ,to tell her to just hang on,that everything would be fine.But  he knew death when he saw it,Nemoo was tough, but not even she would be making it out alive(which meant that his time was also over as well).

‘ _Dae  res, alak ,rinaki um vathi Nemuri Nanago....um vathi’_ You die a warrior’s death, brave and strong Nemuri Nanago...brave and strong.

Her eyes teared up and he knew she’d understood,the words were the burial rites for the saiyan royals.The last time he’d said them was when he’d learnt of his father’s death.

When her body exploded he watched the crimson rain,feeling himself begin to fade ,his tears mingling with her blood and running down his cheek.

He was vaguely aware of Mayuri shouting in the background,but it didn’t matter,he’d be going away soon(whether it was to see his wife  and brats again,he didn’t know ) but it was time to go.

“Raki wam saiya-jin,iwathe”The last of the saiyans  falling in battle ,how fitting,he muttered to himself,already losing touch with  reality.

He wasn’t aware when Mayuri carved out Nemoo’s brain, and when bone white hands picked up the blade he resided in  and placed it in  a stasis kido,to stop it from crumbling,he wasn’t even aware that he still existed.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My sincerest apologies for killing Nemu, it had to be done.


	13. Chapter 13

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> In honor of the Gotei thirteen, I've decided to end this at chapter thirteen(My very first complete multi chapter fic).Thank you everyone who's read this fic and stuck with it through all the ups and downs.Lots of love to you.

The first time Vegeta  awoke in Mayuri’s chambers he lashed out.Expanding his depleted spiritual pressure as much as he could,mirrors cracked and shattered before the scientist came in and subdued him,not saying a word as Vegeta heated the blade enough to burn his skin-the man didn’t even react.

“I’m sorry Vegeta, hang in there a little while longer”

Hearing the man apologize had been enough to shock Vegeta long enough for him to be sealed away once more.He waited in the quiet room,gaining strength day by day,not even knowing why he was still struggling to survive.

Afterall, Nemoo had been his only tie to the place.He could just let go and drift away.Maybe he’d even get a chance to see the woman again(but he highly doubted it,he didn’t remember exactly what had happened when he’d been near death,but he knew his woman had not been waiting on the other side).

Day in and day out, the urge to give in was strong, but he always managed to push it aside,all because of one thing…his pride(saiyans were not made for peaceful deaths).It just wouldn’t let him go down easy and no matter how hard he tried to let go,  it kept him anchored.

In the end there was nothing else to do but keep on living.

He started training again,conjuring up different foes half heartedly,sleeping more than he should and steadfastly ignoring the mountain they’d been on when Nemoo had learnt his name.

It had been full of roses since he’d ‘reawakened’, dark red and full of sorrow.The flowers never wilted,no matter what his mood swings did to the landscape.In the coldest snow or harshest heat,the roses remained the same.

He sometimes wondered what they meant.Were they representing his grief for Nemoo,the loss of his wife,his home planet,the fact that he’d probably never see the few people he actually cared for or the fact that he didn’t even know exactly how he’d died?

His losses,both in life and death were just too many to count(perhaps that was why the roses covered a whole mountain).

It didn’t matter either way.He was to be stuck in a blade for eternity,just like he’d been stuck under Frieza for most of his life.

Sometimes Mayuri would come and stare at him for hours,looking as though he were waiting for something.As the  years had built upon each other after Nemoo’s death,Vegeta had stoped reacting,not even burning the man anymore when he touched him.At first he’d expected the man to experiment on him,but apart from attaching him to some reiatsu monitors the man had left him alone.

At some point even the monitors had stopped picking up life signs from him,but even then the man hadn’t dissected him.Instead two weeks after he stopped showing signs of life(he slept more than he trained now) Mayuri had come into the tiny room he was kept in.The man had deactivated all the barriers quietly before taking the blade out.

Vegeta had watched with tired eyes as the man placed the zanpakuto in long wooden box,with intricate carvings,and lined with silk- _a coffin._

Despite knowing he was about to be buried alive Vegeta didn’t even try to show that he was still in the blade.He kept quiet as the man walked through the rain pouring rain.His grave was dug with trembling pale hands,right beneath the only tree in the grounds of the twelfth squad that wasn’t artificial.

It was a huge pine tree that Nemoo had often spent hours beneath,either working on complex equations,meditating or simply having lunch.

Vegeta extended his vision to the top of the ground and wwatched as the man stood in the rain for hours watching the grave and for once Vegeta felt something other than rage and disgust for the man.

It wasn’t pity,but it came pretty close.Especially when he noticed the minute shake in the man’s shoulders ,he realized the man was crying, using the  rain to hide his tears.

After that the man no longer came close,not that he didn’t come,he always stood at the farthest gate watching for hours every evening,but he never got closer.

The visits that got even the slightest emotion from him were the first ones from Zaraki Kenpachi.

The pink haired little girl had been Nemoo’s best friend and when finding out she was a fellow zanpakuto spirit hadn’t changed much about the way Vegeta viewed her.She was still a brat,but she’d been Nemoo’s brat.The first night Zaraki had come, he’d been in the form of a red beast, and Vegeta had felt that age old saiyan blood lust stir for a few seconds.

When it had died down Vegeta had closed his eyes,something in him having been broken by not even being able to such a blatant challenge.What good was seeing the outside world if he didn’t have the energy to live in it, it was better to just feel it pass by.

Sometimes Vegeta felt the presence of the others who’d known Nemoo,though  unlike Zaraki ,they only ever came when Mayuri was called away.The shinigami women’s association came, they weren’t as bothersome as they were before, the war had changed them.Sometimes he even felt the presence of the new Captain commander Kyoraku (Nemoo had still been alive when the old man had fallen).

It hadn’t been enough to break him out of his limbo state but it had been enough to show him that he was still alive in there.

A decade after Nemoo’s death, Vegeta was awakened by someone digging above him and singing …loudly.

“I’VE COME FOR MY TREASURE,I’M DIGGIN’,THE DIGGIN’ SCIENTIST,THAT’S ME!YAY!!!”

The horrible screeching came to merciful stop,and was swiftly replaced by something pounding at the lid of his coffin.Light reached his dark world for the first ime in years and Vegeta blinked his eyes open,taking a while to readjust to the brightness.

When he could finally see straight he realized two things,one he was out of his coffin and two whoever had him really had no respect for blades.The hands were too small to enclose around the hilt of the zanpakuto properly,but the person still tried,holding the blade clumsily and swinging.

Annoyance broke into Vegeta’s calm state and the person immediately dropped him as a shot of current flowed through them.

“Ouch!”

The voice was still as high pitched as before and most definitely belonged to a child.He extended his vision to get a look at the brat who’d dared to disturb him and nearly went back into a trance.

_Nemoo?_

No,it couldn’t be.

This child was far too young to be Nemoo,but it was her,those big green eyes were definitely Nemoo.Could it be?He reached out to the child’s reiatsu,lightly brushing against it.The reiatsu instantly wrapped around his and Vegeta found himself at a loss for words.It clung to his reiatsu the same way Nemoo’s had done,like a child a child holding a parent’s hand,trusting them to keep them safe no matter what.

_‘Who are you?’_

The question shocked Vegeta,having been alone in his mind for so long,he’d forgotten what company felt like.

_‘None of your business brat,now put me back and go away’_

_‘Ha! You’re the sword aren’t you,’_

_‘A zanpakuto,I found my very own zanpakuto,this is the best treasure hunt ever!’_

_‘Hi,I’m Nemuri Hachigo,but since you’re my zanpakuto,you can call me Nemu, okay’_

Both sentences were said without taking a single breath ,and Vegeta marveled at meeting someone other than Bra with that ability,but he soon refocused when her words sunk in.

‘ _No’_ The word was growled with such anger it surprised even him,but he still wasn’t done.

_‘You are not Nemoo and you have no right to take her name’_

_‘…I’m…no good?’_

For the first time the cheerfully loud,personality was gone and Vegeta got glimpse of Nemoo in the little girl.

It was then that he remembered something,from the times when he and Nemoo were exchanging information about abot their lives.

A body could be replicated with ease,but a soul could not.You could fill a new body with a dead person’s memories but,the body wouldn’t be the same person.Each soul even an artificial one had something making it unique.

This child’s soul perfectly matched Nemoo’s ,which could only mean one thing.Mayuri,that psychotic mad dog had preserved her soul,the same way he’d kept him around without her being there.

He laughed for a full minute before he managed to get himself under control and when he did there was a little girl standing beside him,giving him the same look Nemoo had given him the first time(at least she hadn’t been crying-thank godeness).

“Are you my zanpakuto?”

The familiar question got a smirk from him and he kneeled to get to eyelevel with the kid.

“No brat,you’re not ready yet”

“When will I be ready then”

“When you have all of Nemoo’s strength ,only then will I consider you worthy,even if you ask others my name,you won’t know it,so you have to get approval from me”

“You’re saying my name wrong it’s Nemu,not Nemoo”The saiyan prince looked skyward and pinched the bridge of his,… out of everything he’d said,the girl had only latched on to the part about her name.

“Brat,your name might as well be _ankle-socks_ right now,for  all I care”

“In fact you aren’t even  Nemoo right now”

“Starting from today,you’re Mini-moo,you’ll graduate to Nemoo once you learn my name”

The kid watched him intently for a long time,weighing him and Vegeta looked right back…amused.Finally the little girl seemed to come to a decision.

“DEAL!” She said right before flinging herself at him and hugging him,pulling back too quickly for him to react.

When the shock of the contact wore off, she was gone.He looked around frantically,only only to stop when he saw her.She was staring at the red mountain,her shoulders shaking as she cried freely.He got up and went to stand beside her,looking directly at the roses for the first time in years.The girl’s quiet sobs turned into wails,and he could tell from the look in her eyes that she had no idea what was happening-but he did.

She was too young to understand,but her spirit still remembered its death.

He put a hand on her shoulder and didn’t let go,making a silent promise to protect the Mini-moo with all his might.She was shinigami and he was a zanpakuto,a soul slayer,and to keep her safe he would slay all those in his path.

Never again,Nemuri would not die on his watch again.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, I know its a bit sad that Vegeta might never see Bulma again, but I just had to write in Hachigo.She's too cute not to.


End file.
